Press KIT "Voices of TransitioN“ NOW on DVD! Look for „Voices of Transition“ on: @filmtransition Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! Voices of Transition (65 minutes, France/Germany 2012), directed by German-French filmmaker Nils Aguilar, explores exciting examples of socio-ecological change in France, England and Cuba. How can we feed ourselves in the future? What alternatives are there to industrial agriculture? How can we make the transition to a re- localised, truly resilient economic system? Documentary, 65/52 minutes, France/Germany, 2012 press Contacts Director and producer: Nils Aguilar / Milpafilms [email protected] Subtitle tracks: English, German, Spanish, Cata- (+49) 030 - 577 044 751 lan, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Polish, Production/ distribution Croatian, Romanian, Turkish, Chinese, Korean, Milpafilms: [email protected] Czech, Mandarin, Japanese (+49) 0178 - 8180232 Available as: DCP, DVD, Blu-Ray Find out more about the film: @filmtransition Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! Content Global environmental trends - climate change, France is a leader in agroforestry research. The peak oil and food insecurity - are forcing us to natural forest ecosystem is the best source of confront the inherent contradictions of our in- inspiration for our shift away from destructive dustrial agricultural system. monocultural farming, towards a diversified and truly efficient agricultural system. Voices of Transition presents paths towards a new model of human existence: one which is In the UK, the Transition Town movement is fair, environmentally sound and fulfilling, with booming. Its many grassroots initiatives are soil and people supporting each other within a developing radical new models of sustainable balanced and sustainable system. living: bringing food production into the city, encouraging energy and resource-conscious Powered by the conviction that these crisis can decision making and localising previously cen- be a major catalyst for positive change, this tralised activities. In short, they’re preparing for inspiring documentary casts a spotlight on a crisis conditions. new global movement. We meet scientists, agronomists, permaculture designers and pio- Like most of the world, Cuba was once heavily neers of the “Transition Town” movement. These dependent on oil for its agricultural production. voices take us on a cinematic tour of France, Then, in 1991, the collapse of the Soviet Union England and Cuba - to communities already meant the country was suddenly faced with a making the transition to local resilience. premature peak oil crisis. But this apparently desperate situation has grown into some- thing truly inspiratio- nal. The Caribbean island has become a pioneer of agroecology and urban farming. 70% of all of the fruits and vegetables eaten in Havana are now produced right inside the city - and they’re totally organic. Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! The Project Voices of Transition is an independent, participatory documentary film project with the ambitious goal of inspiring each and every one of its viewers to join a worldwide social and environmental move- ment. It is an “action film” in the truest sense of the word: instead of sitting back and passively watch- ing, viewers are inspired to get up, join in and contribute to the transformation of our society. the filmmaker screenings Nils Aguilar is a French-German documentary In cooperation with the Heinrich Böll Foundation, filmmaker. A trained sociologist, he has long a series of film screenings and discussions was been conscious of the held from February to the end of April, need for the kind of 2013 in all across Germany. Director societal transformation Nils Aguilar was present at every depicted in his film. event, and Rob Hopkins - co-founder Direct experience of the of the Transition Towns movement - problems of soil ero- joined him at a number of screenings. sion and land-grabbing Public interest was immense: 12 of in the Global South the 16 screenings were sold out. Voices reinforced Nils’ aim: to of Transition has been screened over use documentary film to 1000 times, all over Europe and be- reach as many people yond. as possible - and to inspire them to take action. Voices of Transition is the result of four years of dedicated work. It was researched, shot and edited alongside Nils’ studies towards a degree in Sociol- ogy and Philosophy. A combination of two grants, a global network of volun- teers and money raised through crowd- funding has allowed this project to be realised. Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! Critical Reception This precious film... is about shaping the future here and now. With our tiny steps and collective solidarity, we will make sure the Tree of Life flourishes and grows! Vandana Shiva, activist and winner of the Right Livelihood Award Voices of Transition educates, opens minds to new possibilities and presents a new vision of how our food system could be. As a historic transition unfolds, this film is a very powerful tool. Phd Rob Hopkins, co-founder of the Transition movement This film shows thatwe can transition to a new world - there’s a way, provided we summon the will! Bill McKibben, author and founder of 350.org A masterpiece! Fascinating in both content and delivery. Prof. Uwe Schneidewind, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy I’m more excited about this film than any of the others in this area. I’ve already seen it five times - more than Blade Runner and High Noon! Prof. Niko Paech, economist and author of “ Liberation from Excess” Extremly precious for our educational work Hubert Weiger, president of Friends of the Earth Germany This film was overdue! It poses that crucial question: in what kind of a world do we want to live? Sarah Wiener, TV chef and food writer Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! The Cast (a selection) Rob Hopkins PhD (GB): Co-founder, Transition movement Martin Crawford (GB): Agroforestry expert Dr Claude Bourguignon (F): Microbiologist, LAMS Mike Feingold (GB): Permaculture expert Prof. Fernando Funes (Cu): Agro-ecologist Prof. Christian Dupraz (F): Agronomist & agroforestry expert, INRA Rachel Bibb (GB): Bristol Food Hub Sally Jenkins (GB): Educator, G.R.O.F.U.N. project Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! The Key: Local Resilience Collective resilience, built through local actions: this is the key to building a food system which can cope with adverse conditions and absorb Leigh Court Farm: shocks. From windowbox gardening to large- Community-supported agriculture near Bristol, England scale agriculture, Voices of Transition presents concrete ways towards developing this resilience. Local food production is a crucial pillar of change, but Voices of Transition acknowledg- es that other aspects of our lifestyles must also be radically transformed. The keystones are our values. Only if this paradigm shift occurs will decentralisation, diversity, cooperation and the cooperative exchange, the sharing of resources sharing of knowledge. It’s vitally important that and mutual support become the norm - with our we not only change our lifestyles, but also realign quality of life steadily improving as a result. We can choose where to invest our energy: whether we cam- paign against something which is in demise, or whether we focus our energy on building systems that we will need here, so that we can step off and on to another system. Rob Hopkins, co-founder of the Transition movement Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! IMpressions If trucks suddenly stopped running, supermarket shelves would be empty after just three days. Ira Flatow, science journalist Continual growth is not the solution. We’re forced to invest millions in machinery when we could, instead, create employment on the land! Forey, farmer in Burgundy, France We have allowed ourselves to be told that we cannot live without chemicals. We have to bring an end to this way of thinking. Samura Torres, engineer in Havana Maximizing profits... Growing with Prosaro, it‘s like growing money! Advertisment for fungicide, Bayer Chemicals Just three acerola berries is enough to cover your daily requirement of vitamin C. Espinosa, urban gardener in Havana Voices of Transition – the ultimate action film! Press reviews A lot more convincing than every theoretical lecture. Weekly German Newspaper “der Freitag”, Januar 2014 Only watching the film was impossible. German Newspaper “Schwäbisches Tagblatt”, 14.12.2012 One of the “top food films to make you think“ Sustainable Food Trust Voices of Transition (…) leaves you with raised awareness, an urge to be a part of the change and with practical ideas that you can start implementing immediately. fineswap.com …a ray of hope. Jean-Paul LaCount, The Chic Ecologist From traditional mixed farming techniques in France, to agroforestry and community action in the UK, the film provides many tangible and sustainable alternatives. Village Green Magazine .